Small Slice of Discord

The rancid stench of burnt tires and smoking flesh filled my nostrils. With every cautious step forward, my mouth watered as the metallic taste of Thalia's electricity arched over my palette, dragging my thoughts to far more pleasing realms, such as how familiar I was with tasting it from between her legs.

Does it hurt that, even while angry and glowing like a tesla coil, she still looked really hot?

I made the wise choice to not voice those thoughts. Not while she was busy kicking the charbroiled body of an Amazon into the wall while those around us remained motionless.

Annabeth stayed at my side, with Hylla on the opposite.

"Thalia?"

If she heard me, she didn't show it. Instead she pointed her spear tip at the crawling Amazon while it thrummed with energy.

"Thalia, don't—"

ZAP!

The Amazon spasmed. She curled into a ball, foam building at her mouth.

"Reyna's missing?" Hylla said, her own blade drawn, staring down the punk demigoddess.

Thalia turned her head to the queen, staring her down as if she was an idiot.

The same couldn't be said for everyone else. Many Amazons pulled themselves together, some outright collapsing on their knees and screaming at the corpses they helped create, and others continued where they left off, tackling and turning their weapons on one another.

Whereas I tried to settle the chill running down my spine. The voices all around me warbled and wavered as a distinct ringing echoed in my skull.

Not again. Not after what we just went through… Please… Please be a false alarm…

A tender hand took my own, and I found myself gazing into the stormy eyes of Annabeth. She offered a gentle smile and pressed her hand to my heart, which slowed its rapid pulse to a calm and steady rhythm.

"... not a matter of if! She was in on it!" Sparks flew off Thalia's spear tip.

"But we need more than your word. Let's check the security—"

"Cameras are down! This whole thing was planned!" She turned to the downed Amazon. "So I'm going to get answers! One way or another…"

She raised her spear again,and I knew if she went through with it, she'd kill the woman.

"No, Thalia." I grabbed the spear. My arm went numb on contact.

"We're wasting time!" Thalia growled. "If you won't help me then get out of my—"

I rushed forward and batted her spear to the side, grabbing both sides of her face and forcing her to look me in the eyes. Glowing, crackling a faded blue. She glowered at me, a stray spark shooting from her hair.

"Thalia, listen to me. We are going to get her back. Just breathe. Breathe."

She tried pulling out of my grip. "Stop trying to– Mmmph!"

Electricity danced across my lips as I brought them to meet hers. She struggled less and less until the glow faded from her eyes. Still teary, still half marred with the blood running from her hairline, but no less dazzling for it.

When I pulled back, she glared at me with a heat I couldn't read. She either wanted to drag me into the nearest supply closet or roast me alive. Possibly both at the same time.

But we'd have to wait until later.

I brushed a hand through her hair, my fingertips stained with her blood. "Now what happened? Take us to the beginning."

She growled. "We don't have—"

"We'll get there. Tell us."

She glared at the unconscious Amazon. Her grip on her spear tightened, and her shield rattled against my thigh from her trembling.

"Fine. We were going to breakfast when all of this craziness happened. People started trying to kill each other in the cafeteria. All of us in the hallway tried stepping in to stop them. In all of the chaos, this group took us by surprise. They… I don't know what they used. Some kind of gas or smelling salts. Something. But they knocked out Reyna. They tried it on me, but I turned that bitch into jerky. I chased after the rest as they dragged her away. Then I remember something flying at me before everything went dark. I couldn't have been out for more than a couple minutes, but I know damn well that she was part of that group." She pointed at the Amazon on the floor. "She was the one who took down Reyna."

I tried to gulp back my desire to act just the same way Thalia did. But someone needed to keep a level head. I'd already seen Hylla's reaction to her sister. And Thalia… well… Do I really need to say anything?

"If anyone can help us on the magical front, it'll be Hazel. Or…" I turned. "Calypso! Are you picking up any ambient magic?"

The demititaness placed a comforting hand on Ashe, who was in the middle of what looked like a panic attack. Kinzie and Phoebe corralled the nymphs together, standing their ground against some rogue frenzied Amazons.

"I can't tell. The blast… It was too much. It's leaving traces all over."

I grimaced. "Then we need Hazel. But first we need to get everyone to safety, get the nymphs to—"

ZAP!

I jumped and whirled on Thalia, who butted the downed Amazon with her spear. Hylla pulled her back before ordering her sane Amazons back into the area.

"If you aren't going to give me answers then I'll find someone who will!"

On second thought…

"Wait!"

Thalia froze mid-strike, her spear two feet away from skewering the Amazon. She glared at me, eyes crackling.

"If we want answers, I know just the way to get it. You won't get what you want from a corpse."

"We have our ways," Hylla said. "And are you sure she was involved?"

Thalia recoiled, as if offended by the notion.

"We'll let Thŷella tell us."

What rage remained abated for the moment. Thalia planted her spear on the ground, huffing as the crackling in her eyes and hair softened.

I retrieved the nymph from the group before ushering the rest into a huddle with their four sides covered by one Amazon, one Hunter, one titaness, and one Wise Girl. Once in place, I brought Thŷella to the charred Amazon's side, where she shied away.

"She smells… burnt."

"She is. Let's see if I can't do anything about that."

I knelt by her side and lowered my voice so only she could hear.

"I can help you. Heal your wounds so you're good as new. All I need you to do is tell me what you know. Do you agree?"

She didn't say anything. All that was left was a pained, far away stare broken by the rivulets of tears running down the side of her face. Soft spasms are all she could manage, her charred skin cracking and blistering over.

But after a moment or two, she managed a nod.

With all of the water from the hoses, drawing enough to heal her was easy. But only enough to let her talk. Her lips, her face, her throat. All were good as new. She'd need to earn the rest of her body back.

"Now, the questions. Just know, if you lie, we'll know." I grabbed Thŷella's hand and placed it onto her neck. "Where is Reyna?"

She gulped. "Another warehouse," she rasped. "Harbor Island. North dock."

"Thŷella?"

"That was true."

I healed her hands and arms.

"Why did you take her?"

"I don't know. Sparrow's orders."

"Who's the Sparrow?"

"No one knows."

"Lie."

I growled. "This isn't the time for games. You can stay a charred husk for the rest of your life, which will get much shorter, or you can cooperate."

"I don't know!" she wheezed. "My boss should, but she's with them. Or… that's where she's going."

"So Reyna is with her now?"

"Yes."

"True. And… Master, she… she…"

The waver in her voice told me all I needed to know. I could heal the surface injuries. But without proper medical attention…

"Hylla, she needs to be rushed to the infirmary. She might be able to get you some proper answers then."

Thalia scowled. "After what she did—"

"She fucked up. But she needs to be around to pay for it."

Hylla glowered. "I don't like it, but I'll arrange a transport. As for the rest…" She scanned the downed Amazons around us. I prayed they were just unconscious. Those on their feet and sane managed to break up those who weren't.

In the distance, the roar of battle continued.

"How could things go south so quickly?"

"You can probably thank this."

I jumped back. Theora appeared out of nowhere, holding what looked like a busted open time capsule. Gods know I couldn't tell you what it was, but Hylla's eyes went wide.

"No… How… How did they get that? Who managed to get it?!"

"Security breach in the vault," Theora said. "Say what you will about her, but Myrina wasn't as good as Kinzie."

Hylla paled. "This is bad. How many?"

"All three I'm afraid. Only one was found, sliced into pieces."

"That explains the pronounced effects…"

"Wait, woah. Time out." I stepped between them. "What's this about?"

"I'll explain later. You have the location? Take who you need and go. My Amazons need me."

"Your sister needs you," Thalia snapped. "You abandoned her once, and it's killed her every day since. Don't do it again."

She grimaced. "This isn't something I'm doing lightly. Without someone to quell this—"

"Let us take care of that," Annabeth said. "We have enough charmspeakers, Mist wielders, and leaders to keep things under control."

"But…"

I grabbed Hylla's hand and squeezed. "You wanted an alliance. Let's actually put it to use. They can handle it. But Reyna needs you now more than ever."

Several emotions warped her face over the matter of seconds. She twisted her head, shaking it from side to side as she wrangled her thoughts. Until, finally…

"Agreed. Who can we afford to take?"

"I'm going," Thalia stated, leaving no room for debate.

"Wouldn't have it any other way."

"The rest of us will need to stay," Annabeth said. "And as much help as she'd be for you all, Kinzie should as well. Might help if one of their own is already on our side. And she knows them better than we do."

"And that leaves…" Our eyes turned to the lioness of a huntress we all called Phoebe, who was in the process of dressing Kinzie's arrow wound.

"She's had a rough go of it so far," Thalia said. "But she and Reyna are on solid terms. If she's in trouble—"

"You can count on me," Phoebe called, flashing a smirk. "It's time to have a proper hunt."

"I can arrange for things to be taken care of here," Theora said. "But going off what she said, our subsidiary Ebon Construction is the holding place."

"Dammit." Hylla grit her teeth. "Even without the head, the snake continues writhing."

"Some monster hideout?"

"Not too far off. The last remnants of Blackbeard's crew. I made that vile worm squeal for everything he did. What was left of his crew was more than willing to surrender themselves to work off their crimes. Of all the times I chose to be merciful…"

Given the touchy subjects all around that bit of history, I kept my mouth shut.

"Then you know what you need to do," Annabeth said. "No doubt they have numbers. Not to mention they're definitely expecting you."

"They won't be expecting this." I turned to the atrium, put my fingers to my lips, and whistled.

AWOOH!

Mrs. O'Leary bounded out of the shadows, thundering down on a collection of very confused Amazons. But she was too busy trying to get her daily scratches to worry about something so trivial. Aurum and Argentum growled, right on her heels.

I managed to give her a few scratches, but given the matter at hand, I settled her down in quick order.

"We need your help girl. Think you can carry a few?"

She whined in reply. Whether or not she was complaining or concerned, I didn't know, but she did settle down, laying on her belly. Her droopy jowls spread flat on the floor, covering almost as much space as a full sized bear rug.

Reyna's dogs sat at attention, their ruby eyes locked on me.

"This is where we depart," Phoebe said, shouldering a bow she picked up off the floor. "Our numbers are few, but that hasn't deterred us before."

"Damn straight," Thalia said, already climbing onto Mrs. O'Leary.

"Speaking of which, where are Silena and Zoë? Did they come back with you?"

She shook her head. "They were having too much fun. We just got hungry. And well… we weren't in the mood to start a campfire."

"Right… and Cinder?"

Her eyes softened just a tad, and she opened her jacket to reveal a small orange ball of feathers nesting in an inside pocket. Completely at ease despite all of the lighting shows and screaming from earlier.

"In that case…" I turned to Annabeth. She threw her arms around me and squeezed tight while I did the same.

"Come back to us. And bring her home."

"I will. We will. Get the nymphs to safety. Find Hazel. Make sure everyone is okay. And… try not to have too much fun with the Amazons."

She smiled into my neck. "I have some ideas."

We parted and she let me join the others, who already joined Thalia on my dog. The daughter of Zeus left a spot open in front of her just for me, right behind Mrs. O'Leary's head.

I was all too happy to jump up and let her wrap her arms around me. Behind her, Phoebe said some kind of prayer, but I was already pulling Mrs. O'Leary up and setting her into her stride. Aurum and Argentum followed.

"I'm going to need more to go off of than Harbor Island," I shouted back. "I have no clue where that is."

"I'll guide you!" Theora shouted back, her place on the very tail end of our group. "For now, you just need to go to the coast. That should be easy enough of a start."

"You heard her girl. Show us what you can do."

AWOO!

We bounded forward, rushing to the walls lined with catwalks, then melting into the shadows hiding underneath them.

We managed to appear in what looked like the outlet for some kind of storm drain. At least… I hope that's what it was for, but the smell didn't fill me with confidence. The end was open enough for us, to march through, and Mrs. O'Leary got in her daily requirement of swimming before we managed to make it onto a rocky beach. It's a good thing she really liked water.

Aurum and Argentum were waiting for us, their heads cocked to the side as if debating over how stupid we were.

"Alright," Theora called. "Head south from here. In fact, you can already see Harbor Island in the distance. Right between those two rivers!"

Mrs O'Leary wasted no time in striding along, while the two automatons raced ahead, more than eager to save their master.

"So… This might not be the best time, but is this kind of stuff common? These last few days have been… insane to say the least."

"We just came out of a war," Hylla sighed. "Tensions are still high. And I did just earn a reputation for killing our first ever queen… twice."

"There will always be those that oppose the queen, regardless of who sits on the throne," Theora said. "Many factions vie for control, but Amazonian laws prevent any from having a say unless they want to risk a trial by combat. And considering Hylla's reputation…"

"They resort to poison and kidnapping," I finished.

"Nimh was an extreme case. Investigations revealed she was part of the isolationist group. To them, our strength comes from our self sufficiency. So they weren't too happy with all of the alliances."

"Which is why they were fine with poisoning us as well," Thalia growled.

"Exactly."

"Then we need to be on guard. There's no telling what we're about to go through."

We continued down the coastline, even jumping onto a nearby freeway and leaving a lot of mortals staring at us. I like to think we looked like some sort of exotic tour bus.

Eventually we managed to get to Harbor Island, and Theora took over leading us toward the northern end.

"Alright," she said. "They likely have some form of security set up, so be sur—

PAT! PATTATAT!

Theora flew off the side of my dog.

"Theora!" Hylla screeched.

Gunfire continued, and I kicked my heels into Mrs. O'Leary, and she howled before charging down the side of the building. Thalia raised her shield.

"Circle back!" Hylla cried. "We need to get her!"

"We can't risk Mrs. O'Leary! She's too big a target!"

"Then send her away! But we need to—"

"She's not moving," Phoebe cut in. "I… I'm sorry, but…"

PATTATAT!

"We keep moving. We'll grab her on the way back. I'm… I'm sorry Hylla."

That seemed to break the queen. Another tally. Another person she cared for snuffed out in one day. Her best friend, her guards, now her spymaster. She wept silently as Mrs. O'Leary rushed us away from the gunfire.

We turned the corner toward the front entrance. As much as I hated the idea of walking straight into the mouth of the beast, the only other option was to send Mrs. O'Leary charging through one of the closed bay doors. And I wasn't about to risk my dog running into a hail of gunfire.

"End of the line." I turned and slid down her side. "Mrs. O'Leary can take a lot. But I draw the line at guns."

"Assuming they were celestial bronze bullets," Thalia said. "Only Annabeth's dad managed to pull that off so far."

"I mean… True… I'll whistle if it's safe for her."

The other three hopped off, and Mrs. O'Leary sat her oversized butt down while we entered the front door. Aurum and Argentum took point, their tails at attention.

We cleared the front lobby to find it empty. Nobody tried to ambush us. No pirates came swinging cutlasses. But it didn't set my nerves at ease. Hylla and Thalia were at my back, with Phoebe guarding our rear.

"I'm going to skin them all if they hurt her," Hylla grumbled.

"If they wanted to hurt her, they wouldn't have bothered with capturing her. This is definitely—"

CLICK! THOOM!

Row upon row of lights brightened before our eyes, revealing a swath of Amazons and men in construction clothing. About two hundred in total.

"… a trap."

"Nice of you to join us, queen," a voice called. "Though you're a bit earlier than we thought."

A tall, wiry Amazon strode out in front of the small army. One I hadn't seen since I first set foot in the headquarters days ago, the current chief of security.

"Myrina?!" Hylla straightened. "I'd expect this from so many others, but you?!"

She huffed. "As if you could see a dog licking his balls if he were sharing your throne. You've made some serious mistakes, and it's time you paid for them."

"Tough talk coming from a kidnapper." Thalia brandished her spear and summoned her shield.

"Where is my sister? You might be able to escape death as long as she isn't harmed."

"You couldn't protect her before. You think you can protect her now?" Myrina sneered, raised her hand, and flourished it back toward a pair of excavators.

There stood Reyna, gagged, her wrists shackled and drawn up. Chains reached from her arms and lashed around the ends of each excavator arm. Two pirates were already operating them, their hands poised on the controls.

"As you can see, she's unharmed… for now." Myrina dropped her hand, and strode forward. "They have standing orders to swing the arms in opposite directions if you try anything. So don't play coy. I'd rather give her back to you in one piece."

Once the pale shock managed to work its way through her face, the tremulous scarlet of Hylla's fury boiled over.

"You… You've just earned your deaths. All of you."

"Not so fast," Myrina chided. "You're in for a rough time if you think you can fight your way out of this one. Those days are long over."

Thalia's eyes sparked. Phoebe nocked an arrow.

As for myself? A heavy knot coiled in my gut, one that drew out a nausea I hadn't felt since Charleston. Thunder rumbled overhead.

"Oh, quit it." Myrina raised a hand and two fingers. The Amazons around her marched forward by two steps. "This doesn't have to be a battle. All we need is one simple thing."

The pirates around her chuckled, each toting hammers and sawblades. One even held up a nail gun.

"Percy Jackson!" She spat. "You made a mockery of us already. Now you'll do it again."

She snapped. A pair of pirates rushed out toting a video camera and rushed to set it up on a tripod. In moments, they had it rolling. Meanwhile, the twisting in my stomach roiled into a roar, and the thundering overhead grew ever more present.

"If you want Reyna back, you can have her, with our good will. But first, you're going to bend the queen over and fuck her."

That knot died.

"Wait, what?"

Everyone straightened, none more than Hylla, who shot me a confused glance, which I was more than happy to reciprocate.

"Um… I know this seems like a bad time to ask, but… was this all a setup?"

Hylla took a step forward, her knuckles white around her sword hilt. "As if! I thought we were making good progress…"

"You were already on board?" Myrina smirked. "Good. Then this doesn't have to get ugly. Hylla, as you know, there are only two ways to abdicate your throne. Death and life. No one would be stupid enough to challenge you for the right to rule, and that would undermine our goals anyway. So that leaves us with only one option.

"Percy, you will take the queen, put on a good show, and once she's good and knocked up, you are free to go. Consider it a parting gift. The last Amazon queen as a part of your harem."

I slowly turned toward Hylla. "This is a joke, right? And Reyna's in on it?"

Pain crept in on her rage. "No… Much as I wish it was, this isn't a joke."

"Good," Thalia spat. "Because I'm not laughing."

Quicker than I could blink, she and Phoebe turned their weapons to the excavators. A crack of lightning, a twang of a loosed arrow, and the drivers were dead on the spot.

"You just had to make this difficult."

The Amazons marched on us, laying down a wall of riot shields. The pirates joined them with their construction equipment. Even another bulldozer steamed toward us, a massive saw blade attached to the end of its arm.

"Last chance. Breed the queen. Force her to abdicate her throne, or I'll have you all rip yourselves to pieces."

She held up her hand. In her palm was a glass ball no larger than a grapefruit. But in that was an apple made of pure gold.

"You wouldn't. You'd kill your own troops with that!"

That set the other Amazons to pause. Even the pirates, minus the guy in the bulldozer, hesitated.

"Don't listen to her," Myrina called out. "Remember your sisters. Remember Puerto Rico!"

I didn't know what she was talking about, but one look at Hylla told me she struck a nerve. Even Thalia and Phoebe took a step back.

What I did know is that a wall of Amazons and pirates were ready to curbstomp us into a smear on the concrete, and that the roar in my gut came back with a vengeance. So before I let it go, I let out a shrill whistle, which only incentivized the Amazons to pick up the pace.

AWOO!

A wave of fear swept over the pirates, and the looming shadow of my megadog towered over me. I shot my hand out toward the saw-wielding bulldozer.

"Sic em!"

The mountain of fur and over enthusiastic muscle charged the vehicle, and the driver made the wise choice to jump out of the way while Mrs. O'Leary dove to the side and tackled the bulldozer to the ground like it owed her dog treats. That set off the rest of the army, who cut the preamble and charged us at full speed.

Hylla matched them, charging head first into the army. Thalia shook the building, ripping through the roof of the warehouse with blinding white bolts. Phoebe loosed a volley of arrows, downing Amazons and pirates alike with every shot. Aurum and Argentum rushed to Reyna, lunging forward and snapping her chains under their magical bite force.

I answered the roar in my stomach, and called for the sea.

GROHNNNN! CRUNCH!

The row of bay doors facing the coast, crumpled under the full might of the waves battering them. Seawater flooded the warehouse, and dozens of Amazons slipped under the surface.

Myrina growled and made good on her threat. She threw the glass ball at us.

CRASH!

In the rain of lightning and rush of the ocean, the Amazons didn't notice the golden apple rolling to a stop right between them all. Not until one made the mistake of blindly stomping on it in her rush to reach us.

"Thalia! We need a blast! A big one!"

The Amazons slowed. The pirates stumbled, shook their heads, then lifted their eyes, wide with frenzy.

"Misandristic bitch!" A pirate swung his hammer and caved in the back of an Amazon's head.

All Hades broke loose. Any semblance of a formation crumpled. Amazon turned on pirate, and pirate turned on Amazon. Hylla, already overwhelmed with her bloodlust, wasted no time carving a swathe through the people she once called allies. Even I had to fight off the stray, maddened warrior woman and ransacking pirate. All while I concentrated on raising the water level and battering the core of the horde into submission with an onslaught of waves. Mrs. O'Leary charged into battle, happy to squish people underfoot and toss them aside like ragdolls. But she went stiff, looked at me, howled, and ran away, disappearing into the shadows.

My ears popped, and I used that last moment of clarity to fling Hylla back with us, pulling a watery shield around us and praying Reyna had the foresight to close her eyes and find cover.

KRACKATHOOM!

Black spots danced in my eyes. My ears rang brutally. As I tried to smash my double vision back into one, Phoebe wrestled Hylla to the ground while the last vestiges of bloodlust tried to fight their way through her.

I parted our dome of water, revealing a perfect dry ring around us while the remaining fighters in the warehouse were down for the count. Some managed to twitch and splutter, but most floated completely still.

My stomach turned. For as horrible as what they planned to do was, and as bizarre as what they wanted from us, killing other people, demigod or not, never sat well with me.

All save one. Myrina tucked tail and dashed up the stairs, climbing her way onto the catwalks. Hylla stopped her fits, whatever hold the apple had on her burned out by the combined power of Thalia and myself, with Phoebe to keep her calm.

Though that calm demeanor went out the window the moment Reyna stepped out. Frazzled, hair sticking up in weird places, dragging two chains across the floor by her wrists, but alive nonetheless. Aurum and Argentum took their posts at her side, nuzzling her on as she took one shaky step after another.

Hylla broke into a sob. Phoebe released her grip and let her rush to her sister, dragging her into a fierce embrace. Thalia was right behind her, joining them both in the most aggressive group hug I'd ever seen.

That left me and Phoebe to turn on Myrina, and with a mutual nod, we made our way up the stairs. A single Amazon attempted to head us off, raising a shaking sword at us. Phoebe batted it away and I just used the water at her feet to pull her back down. She let out a sigh when we marched past.

Myrina fled toward a rooftop exit, and Phoebe and I had some serious ground to cover. The two of us nearly tripped one another over and over, both of us eager to drag down the woman behind so much suffering.

The door slammed shut, and we seemed bolted in place. Yes, we tried pushing and pulling.

So, without any other choice in mind, we both backed up, shared a nod, then charged the door.

THANG!

"Damn that hurt." I grabbed my shoulder.

On the bright side, the lock didn't survive the both of us, and we were able to swing the door open.

We strode out, sword and bow drawn and ready. But out there was only a single person rushing toward the fire escape.

Phoebe didn't waste any breath. With a quick draw and release, she sank an arrow into Myrina's lower back. Once she slowed, Phoebe brought her down with another arrow to the back of the calf.

"Nice shot."

She nodded, her expression fierce. We marched down on Myrina while she tried to crawl away. It took us all of thirty seconds before we were on top of her.

She rolled onto her side, holding a glass sphere to her chest, another golden apple inside of it.

"You're not taking me alive," she panted. "I still have one last option. We all know what Hylla does to the people who oppose her."

"Anyone can challenge her," Phoebe said. "It might be archaic, but it keeps tyrants in check. Why not just do that?"

"Because that doesn't change anything! A queen with a good sword arm, but no capacity to rule is just as useful as any other guard! We need a queen who understands her people! A queen who serves her people!"

"And she doesn't?"

"Once, she did. Few challenged her out of genuine respect and the loyalty she inspired. But then the war came and…"

Tears rolled down her cheek. She clutched the ball to her chest like it was her baby.

"Sixty seven."

"Um. What?"

"Sixty seven." She snapped her gaze on me. "That's how many Amazons died in Puerto Rico. That's how many of our sisters in arms she led to the slaughter."

Phoebe turned away, her expression pained.

"You understand! Her tactical mind is lost! Her ability to lead was blundering along with no goal in sight!"

"I understand better than anyone," Phoebe said, her voice cold. "I was the first one dead. I understand we all made mistakes. I understand we all underestimated Orion."

"She did that!" Myrina shrieked. "Every one of her advisors told her not to go! That our place was where we were strongest! That we didn't know enough! But Fates forbid she risk her poor sister getting hurt."

She huffed and panted, but nonetheless, her eyes were red and misty. I almost felt for her. But I knew firsthand the guilt that weighs on people who lead others to die. Friends, family, all dead because we didn't know enough. Because I didn't know enough.

"You can explain all of that to Hylla. But we're taking you in."

She raised the ball. "You can try."

THWIP!

The ball shattered, and the apple within exploded in a flash of silver light.

"Thank you for the invitation," a new voice said. "I was hoping you'd give me an opening."

Myrina stared at her empty hand in shock, glass shards cutting her palm. Phoebe and I turned to face our new onlooker.

"Artemis?"

The goddess of the moon shouldered her bow and levied us with a tired smile.

"There is too much I want to say. Too much I need to say. So perhaps we should move this conversation elsewhere."

Myrina stared at Artemis in wide-eyed panic. She tried kicking herself away, but Artemis simply flicked her wrist and Myrina's wounds healed over, popping the arrows out of her body.

"You… you don't have the right! Gods can't interfere with mortals. We didn't involve any monsters for you to hunt!"

"Oh we could have a philosophical debate over what truly qualifies as a monster, but I'll not bore you. The simple truth is I can interfere if another god has already done so. And that little display with Eris' apples was quite the party trick."

"Wait, you knew?!"

"Oh, yes. Granted, given Eris' field of control, that wasn't quite enough for me to have conditions to step in. But that last apple wasn't Eris' apple of discord, was it?"

"What do you… Of course it was!"

"Really?" She held out her palm, and the same golden apple appeared in her hand. "Tell me, anywhere on this, do you see the words 'For the Fairest?' written?"

She turned it in hand. Sure enough, it was completely blank.

"You see, Eris isn't the only one with golden apples. Hera, for instance, with her apples in the garden of the Hesperides. But you also have the lesser known story of Atalanta, a woman who many seem to believe was a member of the Hunt. Phenomenal as she was, she didn't exactly make such a commitment.

"She was more than willing to marry, which runs antithetical to the vows to join. But only under one circumstance. Her would-be husband would have to beat her in a race. Any who lost would die by her blade.

"One man, Milanion, desired to marry her like many before him. But he was crafty. He made a deal, and received the apples as a result. Apples capable of instilling a treacherous greed and lust into those who were under its effects. And of course, Aphrodite happened to be the purveyor of such a fruit.

"Aphrodite, who happens to be in my charge for the next century as of a number of days ago, courtesy of the man who stands before you. As such, her domains are just as much my responsibility as my own. So yes, I am well within my rights to step in when you would abuse such an artifact."

Whatever steam Myrina had left deflated. She slumped down and dropped to her knees, letting her head sink.

"Yes. Please make this easy for us. Whatever your queen sees fit as a punishment, I promise, I can do much worse to those that irritate me."

Myrina didn't bother attempting to fight back. Artemis, satisfied, turned to us, and flashed the apple out of her hand.

Phoebe looked like she was staring at a ghost. Eyes wide and darting, face pale, breaths short and choppy.

"I… I owe you a great deal of—"

SLAP!

Both Myrina and I shared the same expression. Phoebe's shock shifted to rage, and as angry tears spilled from her eyes, she reached out and slapped Artemis across the face. I tensed. How would I protect Phoebe from that? I've already been on the receiving end of her temper, and I wasn't sure if I could take another boar. Or gods forbid if Artemis decided to handle things more personally this time around.

But just as quickly, Phoebe rushed in and pulled Artemis into a hug, crushing her against her chest while sobbing into her ear.

Artemis didn't react. She stared blankly where Phoebe stood. Then closed her eyes and returned the gesture.

"I'm so sorry, my friend."

I stood there with Myrina still down on her knees. Both of us shared the stupid blank expression of people who just watched a woman slap a goddess and get away with it.

"I owe you a great deal of apologies as well, Perseus. My crimes against you far outweigh any perceived slights, for which you were already innocent. And yet you returned only a gesture that I could not believe would ever happen in my time. One I still cannot truly comprehend."

"Yeah, I… I just really didn't want to have them involved. It seemed like they'd cause more problems."

She gave me an understanding smile while rubbing Phoebe's shaking back. "Still, I owe you a great deal. More than I could hope to give. But for now, I must ask something more of you."

I hesitated. "Um… I'm listening?"

"Time. I request some time to speak with my friend. Alone, that is."

"Ah. Uh. Yeah. Sure. I'll just… Yeah, let's go."

I pulled Myrina to her feet. Then escorted her back to the rooftop door. But not before yet another familiar face revealed themselves. You'd probably think Thalia. Or Hylla. Even Reyna. But no. Instead, the grim expression of Theora met me, clutching her side, where a patch of red soaked through her clothes.

"So it's done." Theora grunted, leaning back against the wall. "That's good. Maybe we can forgo more bloodshed for a while."

"You're one to talk, you backstabbing bitch!" Myrina spat. "Give me one good reason I shouldn't rat you out."

A chill trickled down my spine. "Wait… You…"

"I'm also working in opposition to the queen, yes. But she's more than well aware of this. She knows I want her replaced. But I want the transfer of power to be free of any further bloodshed; a matter which many others seem to disagree with." She glared at Myrina.

"We had her! All they had to do was fuck!"

"Which will happen on its own time. I swear, the two can't seem to have a single conversation without her walking away damp."

How am I even supposed to respond to that?

"And you didn't think to tell us that?!" Myrina raked her hands through her hair while Theora eyed her with pity.

"You never asked. Besides, I've been a little busy dealing with the isolationists lately."

"Okay, seriously, what the Hades you two?" I swiped my hands through the air. "What's with all of this 'they're going to fuck' talk?"

Theora gave me a flat smile. "You put a baby in her, and she'll have to abdicate her throne."

I tilted my head. "So… the Amazons don't like having pregnant queens?"

"On the contrary. Once, they were a cause for celebration. But we have a very strict code against killing children, whether they're walking on two legs or still growing in the womb.

"Over the centuries, several queens exploited this fact. They'd always be pregnant. They'd start as soon as they were ready to conceive. Breeder queens, we used to call them. No matter how poor of a job they did, nobody could challenge them for over three quarters of the year.

"Well, give or take about seven hundred years ago, one of our more sensible queens put forth a new law and precedent. Whenever a queen falls pregnant, she is to relinquish her throne, its privileges, and all responsibilities. From there, a tournament is to be held to determine the next queen. During that time, the former queen's advisors are to rotate a ruling position daily, until the next queen is chosen."

"And let me guess, you plan on taking the throne?"

"No. I want nothing to do with it. I spent years slaving away and building myself up to get where I am now. This position was rightfully earned. I'm not giving this up just because I think our current queen lets her emotions get the better of her."

I mulled over that. But my thoughts kept circling back to one simple matter. "So… all of this, Hylla asking me to… She was just planning to use me so she could leave the Amazons?"

"Yes and no?" Theora groaned, pressing her hand over her wound. "She's a lot of things, but she's not a liar to her allies. If she told you something else, she was telling you the truth. But there was definitely more to it. If things got bad enough, and she didn't have any chance at turning things around, you'd make for a really good escape route. A one way ticket off the throne. Given your reputation, no one would risk coming after her once word got out you were the dad. At least, no one with any sense." She turned a disapproving stare to Myrina.

"We had the same plan," Myrina huffed.

"But you didn't have the patience to see it through. Tell me Percy, how long do you give it until you inevitably wind up sleeping with her?"

I scratched the back of my head. "Uh… Can't say. It's not something I really plan for."

"Exactly. You've had Kinzie. You've done more than enough to earn her respect. And after today's fiasco, I'd wager she's ready to pull your pants off the first opportunity she gets. So good job Myrina, you got your wish. But you won't be free to see the results."

We finished our talk rather quickly, and made our way back inside, where Theora took over binding Myrina's hands together. With her handled, I offered to treat Theora's wound, but she insisted on letting the medics back at their headquarters address the matter. The same couldn't be said for Myrina, who needed her leg treated otherwise I'd have to carry her down the stairs.

Reyna, Hylla, and Thalia were all down below, with all the conscious people rounded up with their arms bound in rope, chains, or whatever else they managed to scrounge up. There were still too many bodies on the ground for my comfort. Then again, one was one too many.

"Theora, you…?" Hylla lifted her head, but pulled it back as her expression seemed to fight against itself, warring between shock, relief, and anger.

"It wasn't my proudest moment," Theora said. "But I'll live. Completely knocked the wind out of me though." She shoved Myrina forward. "That's one more coup dealt with. I hope you aren't planning on fighting anymore today."

Her shoulders sagged. "That depends on a lot of other people. But… where's Phoebe?"

"Still on the roof." I stepped over toward them, and Reyna made the first move in pulling me into a hug, doing quite well at popping my spine in the process. "She… Ghmm, wow I needed that. She's having a chat with her former boss."

"Artemis?!" Thalia jolted up. "Are they… Fuck it, I'm not missing this!" She dashed up the stairs and managed to vault her way across catwalks before disappearing through the door we came in.

"Can't be said she doesn't care," Hylla said. "It's an admirable trait. I can see why you're taken with her."

At first I thought she was talking to me, but she was looking at Reyna, who broke the hug and gave her a sheepish smile. "Loyalty is hard to come by these days."

"I know." She sighed. "But you don't seem to have an issue finding people like that nowadays. It's only fair."

Reyna frowned. "For what it's worth, he's definitely more than I can handle."

"Hey!"

She squeezed my arm. "You are! But you're also a good man. And even though I know we aren't going to see eye to eye on everything, you deserve to have a good man in your life."

Hylla turned her head slightly and narrowed her eyes. "Are you…?"

"I hated the idea. I thought you were trying to steal him away. I thought this was some cruel ploy to manipulate either him or me. Maybe both. But… as long as you know that I'm not giving him up, I can live with knowing you're happy because of him."

Hylla stayed quiet for a moment or two, her eyes focused on Reyna, but unfocused all the same. "You've thought on this for some time."

Reyna gulped, squeezing my hand. "I have. I already share him with plenty of other women. I'm friends with many, and view a select number as family, but the rest may as well be strangers to me. Acquaintances I barely know."

"That'll change," I said. "Just give it time."

"I know. But… it wouldn't hurt me to share him with one more person I love. Even if that person happens to be my sister."

Hylla's doubtful expression softened into the slightest smile. "I'm not sure I'm convinced. And I can see he isn't either. So if you're serious about this…"

She trailed off, eyes growing wide as Reyna stormed over to her, grabbed her wrist, then flung her at me. She landed with a soft grunt against my chest. I did too.

"Well… can't say I never took a hint."

"Ahem."

We turned to face Theora and Myrina, who watched in their own amusement or outrage.

"Maybe you should hold off for a few more minutes. Let me get all of these back to HQ. And… I'll send a cleanup crew. We have a lot of funerals in our future."

Hylla nodded grimly, her eyes roaming over the dozens of bodies laying across the soaked floor.

"Come on!" Myrina complained. "I wasn't going to make them do anything they weren't already planning! Isn't this extreme?!"

"Your actions directly led to the injuries and deaths of dozens, if not hundreds of people. You will answer for this. As will those who followed you."

Theora shoved her toward a group of Amazons all bound in a long chain.

"Wait, but I didn't—"

The moment she could touch both, the group vanished in a puff of mist.

"That's better." Hylla pressed a finger to my jaw and turned my head to face her. The slightest hint of playful mirth hid under her dark and somber eyes. "If you'll indulge me."

She pressed her lips to mine, which I was a bit reluctant to return. Not because it was bad or that she wasn't attractive or anything. Hades, even Reyna basically gave us her blessing. But something about kissing in the aftermath of a battlefield didn't sit right with me. Then again, they were daughters of Bellona.

So I indulged her, trading her kiss for a slightly deeper one. Even going so far as to squeeze her arms as she palmed my chest. She pulled back before it got out of hand, panting slightly and licking her lips as a more heated desire flickered in her eyes.

Not that she had much opportunity to act on it. The moment she had an opening, Reyna lunged in for a kiss of her own, wrapping her arms around my neck and wasting no attempt to assert herself as the more dominant between the two of them.

For some reason, I was okay with that. Nothing like a little healthy competition between sisters.

"We should get going," she said, breaking our kiss, but letting the small thread of saliva linger between our lips. "Who knows how bad things are back at the headquarters."

"That'll depend entirely on how well your friends managed to play damage control," Hylla said. "Hopefully, we won't return to find the building razed to the ground."

"Which reminds me." I rested my hands on Reyna's hips, which she took with a very pleased smile. "We really should talk about Theora."

She hesitated, but a light of understanding shone in her eyes. "So you know one of my top advisors wants to supplant me."

Reyna stiffened. "What?!"

Hylla pinched the bridge of her nose. "Yes. It seems we do have a lot to discuss."

A/N: How's that for an Easter gift? So Percy and company are once again allowed to do what they do best, kick some serious butt! Always thought this was a horribly underutilized combo, Thalia and Percy. Like come on! We know how dangerous water and electricity are together (disregarding the lack of effect with distilled water). Reyna is rescued and we even got some insight regarding Blackbeard's crew. Not that they lasted very long.

So you're in for a treat, as I have technically already finished the next chapter. I'll wait my standard two weeks (one for default and one for allowance in early access), but at the rate things are going, I might actually have the entire Amazon arc completed rather soon. Then we are into the finale. Oh, what a time this shall be.

Discord remains open to you all, and I of course have a full Archive of Our Own account as well, should you wish to peruse that as well. Know that you'll have much better luck with reaching out to me on Discord than anywhere else. Not that I don't read the reviews. Trust me, I do. But enough of that. Many of you have a holiday to get back to, so enjoy it! This is Ronin signing off.